Senior software delivery architect
Fred Thiele
I bring order to what has become unmanageable.
Persistent, but pragmatic.
Since 2008 I have been bringing software and delivery landscapes that have grown over the years back under control: from CI/CD architecture through infrastructure as code to stable operations. My approach is always the same: understand first, then build cleanly and with automation, and finally hand over in a way that lets the team run it on its own.
For IT service providers I also work as a subcontractor: assessment or implementation under your contract, handover to your team.
Focus
What I work on
CI/CD architecture and platform engineering
Delivery pipelines from idea to production, reusable pipeline libraries, self-service platforms for development teams.
System assessment and software archaeology
Uncovering, understanding and documenting systems that have grown over time: inventory, risk map and a prioritised plan of action before anything is rebuilt.
Migration and stabilisation
Moves into the cloud and back, modernisation of build and deployment processes. Recoverability first, then everything else.
Operations and observability
Monitoring, tested backups and runbooks, so that a restart becomes the most boring thing in the world again.
Enablement and handover
Training and coaching for development teams, clean documentation. I deliberately do not make myself indispensable.
Pragmatic AI
Determinism first, AI second: deterministic tools as the foundation, AI where it demonstrably helps. Auditable, reviewed, never on a whim.
Skills
What I work with
Methods
DevOps, continuous delivery, agile ways of working with Scrum and Kanban
CI/CD and build
GitLab CI (self-managed), GitHub Actions, Jenkins with shared libraries and configuration as code, Azure DevOps, Gradle, Maven, Nexus
Infrastructure and IaC
Terraform, Ansible, Linux system administration including NixOS, Docker, Kubernetes, Helm, Argo CD and GitOps, Proxmox
Cloud
Microsoft Azure including AKS, STACKIT, Hetzner, Cloudflare
Operations
Prometheus, Grafana, ELK, backup and recovery, incident handling, updates and patching, runbooks
Security
Supply chain security (SBOM, CVE matching), Keycloak, OAuth2/OIDC, credential and certificate management, hardening
Languages
Python, Go, Bash, Java, Groovy, C and C++
Data and messaging
PostgreSQL, TimescaleDB, MariaDB, Kafka, Redis, MQTT
AI tools
Claude Code, Mistral, in-house MCP tools for analysis in GitLab, Jenkins and Jira, Azure AI Foundry, Amazon Bedrock
Domains
E-commerce (Intershop), retail, energy and metering data, measurement technology, logistics, access control
Approach
How I work
- 01UnderstandKick-off, access to code and infrastructure, then unhurried analysis, supported by tools. Follow-up questions included.
- 02SecureBefore anything changes: prove recoverability and close the most critical gaps.
- 03Restructure and renewAutomate, simplify, modernise. Renewal happens where it pays off, and only there.
- 04Hand overRunbooks, training, a clean handover. Or, if you wish, continued operation.
Selected experience
What I have done
In my own engagements and as a specialist on behalf of IT service providers. I name clients on request, where this has been agreed.
GitLab migration and operations
Takeover of an orphaned, business-critical GitLab instance with more than 300 projects: analysis and backup with proven recovery first, then migration including runners to a reproducible on-prem setup with Ansible and observability, without data loss. Plus runbooks and training for the team.
GitLab · Ansible · Prometheus · Grafana · Backup/Restore
E-commerce delivery landscape
Support across the full lifecycle: migration to Azure with Terraform, Ansible, GitLab and Jenkins, shared pipeline library, distributed build cache, Nexus migrations, modernisation of the Ansible playbooks.
Intershop · Azure · Terraform · Ansible · Jenkins · GitLab CI · Nexus
Platform engineering
Further development of an internal self-service platform for Azure web apps: GitLab CI and Terraform, a Go CLI as the coordinating tool for onboarding and upgrades, with a focus on traceable and robust upgrade processes.
GitLab CI/CD components · Terraform · Go · Azure
Supply chain security
Central software inventory: projects register themselves through their CI and deliver only their SBOM, never source code. Every night all SBOMs are re-checked against current vulnerability data, so a new CVE shows up even without a new build. A locally run AI classifies and asks follow-up questions; every security finding remains deterministically traceable. Aligned with the CRA and NIS2, in internal use.
Syft · Grype · FastAPI · PostgreSQL · Ollama · k3s · Argo CD
Cloud-native delivery from scratch
Building the complete delivery foundation for a metering data product: GitOps-based Kubernetes platform, Terraform, Ansible and GitHub Actions on Azure.
AKS · Helm · Argo CD · Keycloak · Kafka · TimescaleDB · Grafana
Takeover of a B2B SaaS
A complete system assessment as the basis, stabilisation and hardening, and full operation of the platform since then.
Career
Milestones
Self-employed, since 2023 with CDDS AB. Sweden. Founder and technical lead.
AGETO Service, later diva-e platforms and diva-e cloud. Jena. Most recently Senior Expert Continuous Delivery Engineer, responsible for the CI/CD strategy for e-commerce platforms.
Intershop Communications AG. Jena. Build manager.
Automatisierungstechnik Gera, later ISEO Deutschland. Software developer, from 2009 head of software development (access control).
Diplom-Informatiker, Friedrich Schiller University Jena. Diploma thesis on software re-engineering to improve the quality of a server application that had grown over time, graded 1.0 (the highest grade).
Voices
What others say
“Fred has a rare ability to take a complex problem, work through it systematically, and iterate until he has found a robust, maintainable, long-term solution.”“He was largely responsible for the infrastructure and DevOps processes […], where he consistently delivered high-quality work, provided reliable ongoing support, and made substantial improvements through automation and consolidation while maintaining a very high standard of quality.”
„Eine komplett neue CI/CD Pipeline mit Fred aufbauen? Nichts leichter als das. […] Besonders beeindruckt hat mich dabei seine Motivation, uns immer noch ein Stück weiter zu bringen.““His integrity, honesty, and reliability are unmatched. […] His calm, constructive approach makes even the most complex tasks feel manageable.”“His structured approach, outstanding problem-solving skills, and high quality standards are particularly noteworthy, even when facing complex technical challenges.”“Fred always develops resilient and future-proof implementations. […] Our team owes a lot to Fred.”Excerpts from recommendations on LinkedIn. In full and with names on my profile: linkedin.com/in/f3rdy (external link)
A system that needs someone to take care of it?
Write to me. I usually reply within one working day.